After three years of radio silence, L-Tido dropped his anticipated collection of work in the form of an EP titled Pressure.
The four-track EP reached number 1 on iTunes, which has immensely humbled L-Tido.
“Having not dropped music in three years, you don't just assume that people are waiting on you because the truth is that life goes on. So going straight to number one on iTunes was a really beautiful moment. When we had the listening sessions, local superstars showed up to show me love and so the process of me dropping the music has been really beautiful,” said L-Tido, real name Thato Madonsela.
The star had to halt everything due to label issues. The decision to release an EP as opposed to singles, as per usual, he said was informed by the fact that he wanted to give a taste of the type of music he has been working on over the years.
“I have recorded over a 100 songs, so it didn’t make sense to release singles when I can give a full experience with these four songs -especially since I recorded so many over the three years.
Describing his music as a taster to the album he is working on, he also features an array of prominent artists like AKA and Stogie T.
“The four tracks paint different pictures, also giving a taste of what's to come and give different palates of taste that I'm on. The first song titled Never Be Me, is mostly a song about the values that I stand for as a person. I see a lot of social injustice and social mishaps, because a lot of things are happening in society, and I don't think it is cool. So I made a song that says ‘that could never be me’ - guys that lay their hands on ladies, that could never be me. So it's mostly a song that's a statement on everything that I stand for,” he said.
His love for hip hop, he says, dates back to when the genre was never popular when genres like Kwaito and House music were the in thing. The young lad from Alexandra (Gomora) would relentlessly adorn the entire culture - dress the part and speak the part - even when it had not caught on, he said.
“That is how deep my love relationship with Hip Hop is. So even now with talks of the movement being at its all time low, I am not fazed and will continue to walk this path. It's been here before and it survived.
“What hip hop taught me is that it’s okay to be an outcast or to be different, on how to value myself and how to stand for what I believe in. It is all hip hop. It’s such a genuine love that I refer to it as the soundtrack to my life,” he said.
His full body of work is due to be released next year around March or April, and will also include works from his 100 songs.
@AmandaMaliba